Ambrose & Sons
by India Rose Ghersi
Summary: The 10th Doctor & Donna land in 21st century London to find a new coffin company that seems just a little bit fishy...
1. Pro It's Raining, But Only Over There

Donna and the Doctor stuck their heads outside the TARDIS, peering curiously at their surroundings before stepping outside.

"Looks like…" The Doctor started, looking around again. "21st century London. Yep."

"What are we doing back here?" Donna asked.

"Dunno, TARDIS brought us here, so there must be something…"

* * *

"Doctor," Donna said suddenly, tugging lightly on his shirt sleeve, "why is it only raining over there?"

"It's not raining," the Doctor said, glancing at her. "Look, sun's shining."

"No Doctor, over there. It's raining but only over there…"

Finally the Doctor followed her gaze. "Oh, I see what you mean. Well, that must be what we're here for. Shall we go check it out?" He asked as Donna looped her arm through his and allowed him to lead the way.


	2. 1 Preserving Life

"Newspaper sir?" Called a vender near the rained on building.

"No thank you," said the Doctor, approaching them with Donna not far behind. "But, could you tell me, has that company been running very long?" he asked, pointing.

"Oh, only weeks Sir," said the newspaper vender. "It was abandoned for months, possibly years before that. It's only since the new owners have taken over that it's become well…. Unusual."

* * *

"I'd be careful if I were you!" He called as Donna and the Doctor wandered away, toward the building.

"Ambrose and Sons," the Doctor said thoughtfully as he read aloud from the large sign above the door. "Coffin company."

"Preserving life…" Donna read the slogan below. "That sounds a little dodgy."

"Hmm," said the Doctor, "Shall we go take a look?"

* * *

"Good morning Sir, Lady." Greeted a man as they entered the darkened foyer with a tinkle of the bell above the door. "Looking for a coffin?"

"In fact we are," said the Doctor, "and we've heard you're the best coffin company around."

"Indeed," said the man, "well, I'd like to start by saying that I'm deeply sorry for your loss."

"Thank you," Donna answered, a fake, yet convincing look of sadness on her face.

"My name is Caldwell Ambrose, and if you'll allow me to take you through, our selection is in the back," he explained holding back a dark gossamer curtain and allowing them to step through after him.

"So, as you can see, we have a premium, top quality range here. Anything take your fancy?"

"Do you think we could take a look inside one of them?" The Doctor asked curiously, looking from a coffin back to Caldwell.

"I'm afraid not sir. It is a policy of Ambrose and Sons not to open the coffins until it is time for the deceased to be placed inside. Optimum freshness, you understand."

"Preserving life," the Doctor said thoughtfully to himself.

"No we don't _understand_" said Donna loudly, practically spitting out the last word. "How are we supposed to know they'll be comfortable if we can't see inside?"

"Ah, well…" Caldwell said, wandering across the room. "Over here, we have a coffin for display only. You may see the inside yourself. The interiors of our coffins are all the same."

"They are, are they?" Donna asked questioningly as Caldwell led them to the display coffin.

"Every single one," said Caldwell, "identical." A forced smile crossed the pale man's lips as he struggled to hold on to his patience and keep his professional demeanour in check.

"Looks a little narrow to me," Donna whispered to the Doctor, who nodded thoughtfully.

"A little bulky here, Donna look,"

"Hmm, and cold too," she said, shivering slightly as her fingers brushed the lining.

"Is there a reason the coffin feels so cold?" The Doctor asked, looking up at Caldwell.

"I think people would freeze to death in here if they weren't dead already…" Donna commented. "Are you sure there'd be enough room for 'em in here?" She questioned, looking up at Caldwell. "What with the big bulge and everything?"

"It all comes back to our slogan Sir," said Caldwell, smiling politely back at the Doctor, "and as for the width of the interior Madam, one size fits all, as they say and we endeavour to ensure the comfort of our deceased clients."

"I'm sure," said Donna, a mild tone of sarcasm in her voice.

"Well, thank you Mr Ambrose, I think we've seen enough for today. We might come back later though, alright?"

"Of course." Caldwell said graciously, grateful they were finally leaving. "Please, allow me to show you out."

* * *

When the coast was clear, Caldwell returned to his colleagues, who also doubled as family.

"Well Caldwell, do you think they'll buy one?" Asked his father.

"They did say they'd come back."

"Come now Boy!" His father said seriously, almost exploding, "You're here to sell. You know we need an army. Just a few more should do it…"


	3. 2 Army

"Just a few more.." The Doctor said thoughtfully as they wandered down the street.

"What could they possibly need an army for?" Asked Donna.

"Well, that's the fun of the adventure, isn't it Donna?" Said the Doctor cheerfully, "finding out!"

* * *

"The freezing cold temperature of the coffins might have something to do with it," said The Doctor, pacing the TARDIS as Donna watched. "It was a little cold in there."

"A little?" Donna asked in disbelief. "A little? Doctor, it was _freezing_! But what about those huge bulges? They've got to have something to do with it!"

"Yes." The Doctor agreed, continuing to pace as he thought. Suddenly, he stopped a finger in the air as he looked back at Donna with a huge grin on his face.

"What are you grinning about?" she asked, her eyebrow arching ever so slightly as her lips involuntarily formed a small smile.

"Oh Donna!" Said The Doctor, his palms pressed either side of his head as he ran closer, the grin on his lips growing wider. "You are brilliant! Just brilliant! That's the control system. It's got to be!"

"Control system?" Donna repeated. "What for?"

"That's the next conundrum isn't it?" The Doctor replied happily. "But I suspect it has something to do with their 'army'. I've got to say, I'm not liking the sound of this."

* * *

"We've been thinking about it" said the Doctor to Caldwell when they returned the next morning, "and we need more information."

"Of course sir. Just tell me what you'd like to know."

"Do you have any packages?" Donna spoke up. "If we did decide to put our… loved one in one of your coffins, what happens then?"

"If you choose us, a place at a cemetery is included along with burial."

"A place at a cemetery?" Donna repeated. "Which cemetery would that be?"

"Ivy Lawns."

"Ivy Lawns?" Donna repeated, spitting the words. "I've never heard of it."

"Our own private cemetery Miss." Caldwell answered quickly. "All our clients are buried there. All in one place. Makes it easier for us to tend to their after care."

"After care?" Donna questioned.

"Ah, tending to their grave and headstone, the general upkeep and management of the cemetery. That sort of thing."

* * *

"Preserving life seems to be their answer to everything!" Donna said, unimpressed as she and the Doctor left the coffin company once again.

"Probably why it's their slogan. Also a clue though, and the way he was talking about that cemetery…" his eyes lit up like an excited child's as he turned to look at his red haired companion. "What do you say Donna, we go take a look at that cemetery.,,"

"I suppose," she said uncertainly. Normally, Donna wasn't one for cemeteries, but the Doctor was with her and so it had to be ok.

"It looks like a normal cemetery to me," Donna said, arms folded as she looked around.

"Yes…" The Doctor said thoughtfully, walking around. "Because people come here during the day, don't they?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if there's something going on, it's not happening in the daytime is it? Not when people want to come and see their loved one's graves," he said, "I say we come back at night, see if anything's changed."

"If there was something funny going on, wouldn't there be signs of it now?" Donna asked.

"I suspect they come here, very early in the morning, clean up after themselves," the Doctor said, "So there's no trace of anything… unusual."

So, Donna and the Doctor returned to Ivy Lawns that night. And they were just in time too…


	4. 3 At The Cemetry

Just as they arrived and began to look around, countless bony hands begin emerging from the ground, ripping through the dirt and the grass. Shortly after, a second set of arms followed and the creatures pulled themselves up and out of the earth. Arms outstretched before them, the zombies began to walk around the cemetery, aimlessly wandering.

The moment one came too close, Donna took a leaping jump backward, looking up at the Doctor as he caught her arm.

"It's alright Donna." He promised.

"I just, don't want them touching me…" she said slowly, shivering slightly, "just in case it's infectious."

The Doctor shrugged his shoulders. "Fair enough then," he said, "now, I'm going to take a look at them, and the coffins. You stay here if you want to."

"Oh no," Donna said, "I'm sticking with you."

* * *

The Doctor pulled his sonic screwdriver from his pocket and buzzed it at one of the holes the zombies had pulled themselves from, then a zombie themselves, and finally the coffin once he dug enough down in the dirt to reach one.

"Ooh. That fella's freezing!" He said" as his fingertips brushed a zombies skin. "Definitely alien." He continued, rising to his feet from using his sonic on the coffin.

* * *

"Let's just watch a while longer shall we?" So, they retreated to the shadows and went about watching the zombies as they wandered around. Until almost the first signs of light, at which point, the zombies all climbed back into the holes they'd dug themselves from and finally into the coffins themselves. Not long later, the Doctor and Donna heard a rumbling noise and turned just in time to see the nose of a big van with 'Ambrose & Sons, Ivy Lawns' printed in big white letters across it's side coming over the hill. Then, they slipped away before anyone had the chance to know they were there.

* * *

The two friends watched from the TARDIS screen and outside, just as the Doctor had suspected, the people from the van were cleaning up after the zombies. They mowed the grass and it looked almost brand new again. Like it had never been touched at all.


	5. 4 What's In A Name?

"I just can't…" The doctor said disappointedly, stopping in his pacing the TARDIS to look back at Donna.

"Figure it out?" Donna asked and closing the space between them within a few strides. "Doctor, that's unlike you."

"I know…" he admitted, "I must be off my game today, something's gotten into me ah…"

"Hang on.." Donna said her eyes lighting up a little more as it clicked together in her head. "Doctor, think about it…"

"Think about what?" The Doctor asked, looking at Donna with wide eyes.

"Their names," Donna said, a little dazed, "_Caldwell_, _Ambrose_ and Sons, _Ivy_ Lawns."

"What have the names got to do with anything?" The Doctor asked, scratching his head.

"Think about it, Doctor," Donna said, "the _meanings_ of the names."

"Hmm…" The Doctor said slowly, resuming his pacing as Donna hoisted herself to sit on a table, her legs dangling in a rhythmic swing off the edge. "Caldwell means cold, Ambrose is immortal and Ivy is like the plant; climbing, poisonous. The names are clues!" The Doctor said enthusiastically, spinning on his heel. When he looked at Donna's his eyes were bright and his smile wide. "Oh Donna! You are brilliant!"

"Doctor, you said the bulges in the coffins were a control system. The zombies were freezing cold, so were the coffins and they said something about an army…" Donna said, joining the Doctor in his pacing as she strung the clues together out aloud.

* * *

**I've re uploaded this chapter in order to fix a formatting error kindly pointed out to me by Duchess67, thank you for that. Nothing else has changed so if you've already read it, there's no need to read it again, unless of course, you want to!**


	6. 5 What Are You?

"What are you?" the Doctor asked, his tone serious and gaze demanding.

"I beg your pardon Sir." Caldwell asked, his eyes repeatedly blinking in disbelief. "I'm afraid I don't quite understand what you mean."

"Oh I'm sure you do," said the Doctor.

"Stop acting dumb," Donna said, spitting her words again, "we're smarter than you think."

"So, _what _are you?"

"Excuse me a moment," Caldwell said in a rushed voice, wandering away quickly.

* * *

"Father, I think they know about us!" Donna and the Doctor could hear Caldwell's frantic voice from a hidden room somewhere nearby.

"What are you talking about Boy?" Came another, annoyed sounding voice.

"They know about us," Caldwell repeated, hardly calmer at all, "they asked 'what I was'"

"What you were?" Came the other voice, "and what did you tell them? You didn't blow our cover, did you Boy?" The voice hissed.

"I asked them what they were talking about, but they keep insisting…"

* * *

With that, Donna and The Doctor saw a fat, tallish man throw the curtain back, making the slender, tall Caldwell look pretty small in comparison as he ran timidly after him.

"You're taking a little too much interest, here lad." Said the man, bringing his nose an intimidating few inches from the Doctor's. But he wasn't scared that easily.

"You'd best mind your own business," the man spat.

"_What_ are you?" The Doctor asked seriously, not about to back down anytime soon.

* * *

The man's eyes narrowed and he beared his teeth like an angry dog.

"That's not for you to know."

"So you admit it," Donna spoke up.

"I didn't admit anything." The man said, caught ever so slightly off guard.

"You did," Donna insisted.

"At least that you're not human," the Doctor agreed, "so what are you?"

The man remained silent as his skin began to freeze over like ice. He ended up morphing into something in-between an abominable snowman and an ice monster.

"This," said the man, his voice more monstrous than before, "this is what I am."

"Ok, next question," said the Doctor still undeterred. Meanwhile Donna couldn't stop staring at the newly unveiled creature, gawking at it.

"Why do you need an army? And what are those zombies?"

"They will be like us," the monster man answered, "and together, with our army, we will freeze the world over."


	7. 6 Melting

"Oh no you don't, not on my watch," the Doctor said, "Donna! Now!"

At the Doctor's command, Donna flicked the switch of a hidden fireplace the Ambrose family seemed to have overlooked and ran.

As the heat rose in the room, the monster man realised what it meant, and began to scream. "No!"

"And if you're the big Daddy," the Doctor yelled over the noise of the rising heat and the terrible screams of the monstrous man and Caldwell as they suffered, "cutting the head will cut the body."

* * *

Over in the cemetery, the deceased in the coffins down below, once bursting with revitalisation of a new, morphed life returned to the peaceful corpses they should have been all along. Dead and gone, their souls having escaped and their bodies laid to rest in the ground.

* * *

A triumphant smile on his face, the Doctor grabbed Donna's hand at the door as they ran from the burning building without a second glance, floor covered by the evil watery remains of an icy race of strange evils.

"We did it," he said, his eyes bright as they met hers.

"Just another ordinary day," Donna returned his smile as she shrugged, "saving the world from icy dominance."


End file.
